Mike Welham has been doing all the heavy lifting while I was MIA for months at time, but now I'm trying to be [almost] regularly blogging again. So, here is the latest from MPR: The Classical Elements and World-Building.

And now for an anti-climatic announcement! This is my blog. Just as work has sucked away all the time I used to spend on Paizo, it has also taken most of the time I spent blogging.

RPG Superstar 2012 Mike Welham stepped in and began a Friday creature feature, then he put the pedal to the mental metal and created a monster for each day of the A-Z blogging challenge. Here you will find some wonderful offerings for your Pathfinder game, many with some surprising extras tied-in at the end.

A great track record. And folks who can't get enough of Mike Welham's work need to check out this feature on my blog: Mythopoeic Rambling. He's churning out the monstrous goodness for your Pathfinder game.

Really sad, just saw his demise on a PBS news ticker. Thanks for everything, Mr. Sendak. Especially that nightmare I had after the first time I read Where the Wild Things Are. I think I was in 2nd grade.
+RIP.

This problem has reached the critical point. A line must be drawn. Support must be rallied. Racism must not be tolerated.

The hatred has got to stop. Now. Gnomes are demi-human, too, dammit. I don't know if it's going to take therapy, re-education, a couple of weeks staying at James Jacobs' house, or death threats, but whatever it is, we've got to do it. Take a good, long look at yourself, Jeremy. Embrace the inner gnome within.

I thought we had a general thread for this, and all I found with the BILLY! thread I started. This should be more useful.

Adventure Time, the most D&D carton ever, had for a long time an implied setting in a post-apocalyptic world. That setting has sense been made explicit. The cause of the apocalypse was the Great Mushroom War.

Here's a fact that recently struck me: I can only think of three characters that are good candidates for having lived before the Apocalypse, and one of those is absolutely certain.

Spoiler:

The Ice King was originally a scholarly antiquarian named Simon Petrikov, until he found the crown and it began his transformation into the Ice King. The scenes from the videos in Holly Jolly Secrets I and II show this. By extension, we could say that Ricardio is also a pre-apocalyptic character.

Marcelline the Vampire Queen and Marcelline's dad (the Lord of all Evil) are probable candidates for having been around before the Mushroom War, whether as humans or vampires, although I can't find any confirmation of this.

Those are the only characters I can think of as surviving from before the current age of the Land of Ooo. Anybody have any observations about this or anything else in series?

I learned this when I was little kid, watching Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs, but I didn't want to play dwarves in FRPGs until I was an adult. Just sitting here, looking at the Dwarf Fighter (looks more like a Dwarf Champion, to me) mini from PFB: Heroes & Monsters, I gotta say: Dwarves are Awesome.

It's been getting lots of discussion in other places, but I thought it could use its own thread over here. What do people think? My own rather personal reactions are below.

Spoiler:

1. The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Yes, yes, Lord yes!
2. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
I know this series has legions of fans, but the first volume just didn't grab me for some reason, though I could see it was funny.
3. Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card
Only have read excerpts. I think I like his American fantasy writing better.
4. The Dune Chronicles, by Frank Herbert
Yes, yes, Lord yes!
5. A Song Of Ice And Fire Series, by George R. R. Martin
I wait for the cable series to become available to me.
6. 1984, by George Orwell
What? Maybe F/SF = Speculative Fiction in general for them.
7. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
On shelf waiting.
8. The Foundation Trilogy, by Isaac Asimov
On shelf waiting.
9. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
It was okay.
10. American Gods, by Neil Gaiman
Good.
11. The Princess Bride, by William Goldman
Good. I think I liked it more than I would have because of the movie and the shared experience.
12. The Wheel Of Time Series, by Robert Jordan
I might give it a chance some day. Mixed feelings.
13. Animal Farm, by George Orwell
It's official, you people have genre confusion.
14. Neuromancer, by William Gibson
??
15. Watchmen, by Alan Moore
Loved the movie.
16. I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov
On shelf waiting.
17. Stranger In A Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein
On shelf waiting.
18. The Kingkiller Chronicles, by Patrick Rothfuss
??
19. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
Haven't read.
20. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
Good.
21. Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick
Good.
22. The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood
Still haven't gotten to it.
23. The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King
Never finished it, but the ones I read were good.
24. 2001: A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke
On shelf waiting.
25. The Stand, by Stephen King
Memory is hazy. Pretty sure I did read it, though.
26. Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson
All these NS books. I've only read Quicksilver. LOVE IT!
27. The Martian Chronicles, by Ray Bradbury
Good.
28. Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut
Haven't read.
29. The Sandman Series, by Neil Gaiman
Couple I read were good.
30. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess
See all my Orwell/Huxley comments.
31. Starship Troopers, by Robert Heinlein
The movie gives me pause.
32. Watership Down, by Richard Adams
Good.
33. Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey
The excerpt I read made me both snoozy and apathetic.
34. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert Heinlein
On shelf waiting.
35. A Canticle For Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller
Still haven't gotten to it, in spite of high recommendations from friends.
36. The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells
Good.
37. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, by Jules Verne
Good.
38. Flowers For Algernon, by Daniel Keys
Hope to get to.
39. The War Of The Worlds, by H.G. Wells
Good.
40. The Chronicles Of Amber, by Roger Zelazny
I think I only want to read the first five.
41. The Belgariad, by David Eddings
Recommended to me, I might read it.
42. The Mists Of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Good: Don't go by movie.
43. The Mistborn Series, by Brandon Sanderson
Have the first one as an ebook; haven't gotten to.
44. Ringworld, by Larry Niven
Heard of it.
45. The Left Hand Of Darkness, by Ursula K. LeGuin
Haven't read.
46. The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien
YES!
47. The Once And Future King, by T.H. White
Good.
48. Neverwhere, by Neil Gaiman
Saw BBC series. Like the idea.
49. Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke
Haven't read.
50. Contact, by Carl Sagan
Movie.
51. The Hyperion Cantos, by Dan Simmons
Haven't read.
52. Stardust, by Neil Gaiman
GOOD.
53. Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson
All these NS books. I've only read Quicksilver. LOVE IT!
54. World War Z, by Max Brooks
Haven't read.
55. The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
Good.
56. The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman
Huh?
57. Small Gods, by Terry Pratchett
Pratchett is the one of the few, if only, folks that makes me pause before saying No Thanks to humor.
58. The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever, by Stephen R. Donaldson
Might well read due to what I've heard.
59. The Vorkosigan Saga, by Lois McMaster Bujold
Haven't read.
60. Going Postal, by Terry Pratchett
See 57.
61. The Mote In God's Eye, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle
Haven't read.
62. The Sword Of Truth, by Terry Goodkind
Don't plan to read; TV series was better than most average TV and watched with wife. Was hoping they would continue.
63. The Road, by Cormac McCarthy
Haven't read.
64. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
YES! (And Yes to related works.)
65. I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson
Have been wanting to pick up.
66. The Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Feist
Not sure. I think I'd rather read the Magician books.
67. The Shannara Trilogy, by Terry Brooks
Blah. The first one hit the spot when I was given it and I was in withdrawal/forgetfulness during a period of academic orgy.
68. The Conan The Barbarian Series, by R.E. Howard
YES!
69. The Farseer Trilogy, by Robin Hobb
Haven't read.
70. The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger
Movie.
71. The Way Of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson
?
72. A Journey To The Center Of The Earth, by Jules Verne
Yes.
73. The Legend Of Drizzt Series, by R.A. Salvatore
Read the comic books with my nephews.
74. Old Man's War, by John Scalzi
Haven't read.
75. The Diamond Age, by Neil Stephenson
Haven't read.
76. Rendezvous With Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke
Haven't read.
77. The Kushiel's Legacy Series, by Jacqueline Carey
Don't plan to read.
78. The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. LeGuin
Haven't read.
79. Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury
Read the original short story; plan to read.
80. Wicked, by Gregory Maguire
Haven't read.
81. The Malazan Book Of The Fallen Series, by Steven Erikson
Haven't read.
82. The Eyre Affair, by Jasper Fforde
??
83. The Culture Series, by Iain M. Banks
??
84. The Crystal Cave, by Mary Stewart
??
85. Anathem, by Neal Stephenson
All these NS books. I've only read Quicksilver. LOVE IT!
86. The Codex Alera Series, by Jim Butcher
Haven't read.
87. The Book Of The New Sun, by Gene Wolfe
Haven't read.
88. The Thrawn Trilogy, by Timothy Zahn
?
89. The Outlander Series, by Diana Gabaldan
??
90. The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock
Overrated.
91. The Illustrated Man, by Ray Bradbury
Yes.
92. Sunshine, by Robin McKinley
?
93. A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Vinge
??
94. The Caves Of Steel, by Isaac Asimov
?
95. The Mars Trilogy, by Kim Stanley Robinson
?
96. Lucifer's Hammer, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle
?
97. Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis
??
98. Perdido Street Station, by China Mieville
Don't think I'm interested in his message/assumptions. We're both Pathfinder fans, though.
99. The Xanth Series, by Piers Anthony
Read the first one, enjoyed it.
100. The Space Trilogy, by C.S. Lewis
YES! Severely underrated..

DENIED: Jack Vance, Manly Wade Wellman, C. L. Moore, Leigh Brackett?
I absolutely disagree with that! Still this list was more satisfying than Gollancz's top ten in each category was. But then, this list had five times the chances theirs did, combined.

Well, it looks like it is time to open up a discussion thread for this. Keep in mind that I am going to be in surgery Monday and in recovery for awhile, so please be patient if it takes me a while to get back to your questions.

If you have not gone to download the S&W Core Rules, draft of 4th printing, you might want to do so. I know Matt Finch is getting close to releasing the 4th printing, and I'm not sure if there will be a period of time when the draft and the new printing are both unavailable in download during transition or not, but I figure it is better to be safe than sorry. When the actual 4th printing is available for download, I'll provide a link.

Overtime, I'll migrate text from FB and DB over here, especially once it has achieved something of a more final form.

Also, it occurred to me that now I am going to have to deal with a spoilers on the blog, so I think I will make two pages now. "THE DUNGEON OF GAME-MASTERY" will be off-limits to players thenceforth, so if anybody has a good suggestion for a name for the Player Page, let me know.

So, looking through the submissions page for this year's ENnies, I only see two submissions for Paizo products. That can't be right! I believe this is the last week to get submissions in. Why torture us like this? Suspense-building? Last minute blitzkrieg planned to throw off the competition? Erik sleeping off his birthday slider coma has thrown off entry schedule?

You, like me, gentle reader, have years of happy memories of Callous Jack, the famous golem with his own cult, and his callous escapades on these boards. Then, all too soon, Callous Jack, simply the Boss or CJ to his callousest friends, was taken from us. We looked for him high and low, yet he was gone. Rumors circulated for months, and then even those grew still. Finally, Callous Jack was declared dead, and his cult's clubhouse passed from prominence to almost complete obscurity. The massive clubhouse stood as a fitting monument to his passing: just as it would never again be full of boisterous, drunken Jacks and their companions, and its remodeling never complete, so CJ would never return to us. Now, after we lose track of the long passage of time, one claiming to be Callous Jack appears. The cult does not resurge, but he wanders around, a brain without a golem's body, a metaphor for the headless cult and the disembodied Jack whose ghost no doubt wanders the gray wastes forever. But be warned! Impersonation is never undertaken without some devious scheme to bring harm. Do not tolerate this desecration of the Callous golem and all that he stood for! We must unmask this false Brain Jack for who he truly is, and punish him for his profanation! Neither his friends, his enemies, nor his flunkies can afford to stand by and allow his scheme to go unchallenged!

I've got to ask about something my friends and I have been seeing in Dallas for the past month, maybe two. We are seeing large numbers of Judges Guild products for D&D and Traveller, mostly, although also for Runequest, Dragonquest, and Trolls & Tunnels. We're talking periodicals, modules, and supplements, mostly from around 1979-1980. Maybe a third of them are still wrapped in plastic. This is not just at Half Price Books, but also at least one other independent used bookstore.

There has got to be a story behind this. Is anybody seeing this anywhere outside of Dallas, Texas? Any facts? Speculation?

I'm not so much taking a poll, as interesting as that may be, as asking, Is there a correct pronunciation of Coeurl? If van Vogt never gave a pronunciation, was there a consensus of how staff said it in-house?

Guidance here will remove a little pebble that has been wearing in the shoe of mind for some time. Why did I wait so long to ask?

You know you belong in this thread if you know who you are. All other MB personality types posting in here will be tacitly admitting that Champions are the Champions, and they just wished they were Champions, too.

Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, leader of Libya, is regularly referred to as Col. Gaddafi. This never made any sense to me. What kind of colonel leads a country? What kind of autocrat has only the military rank of colonel?

Or maybe, just maybe, a Kentucky Colonel gained control of Libya in 1969. What would it mean for a peer of Col. Harland Sanders to have come to power in a North African country? Sounds like an awesome alternative Earth to me that would make a strong campaign setting. Just imagine!

Black Gate, the wonderful Sword & Sorcery publisher, has published an article on Paizo, focusing on the Rise of the Runelords AP, on their website (linked above). It seems a little late in the game, but is really cool. When two great companies come together, it's a beautiful thing.